Red Mage (RDM) Review

I know that its only been a couple of hours since I last posted, but now I really feel the need to review this job.

so... yes, as most of you know, this is not only one of my 3 current 75 jobs, but it was also the FIRST job I leveled from 1-75.

When I started FFXI, I was constantly nagged by my best friend to level this job, because of its "awesome" soloability. I know I know... I went on about this word "soloability" in my last review, but this is stuff people talk about all the time. You hear it about as much as politics and they both have the same concept. They both build up, and then after a couple of minutes, the subject just becomes stupid and arkward, and you feel like shooting yourself. Or in a less harsh way, slapping yourself for even joining/starting the conversation.

But anyway, a couple of years back, I was told that RDM was the best soloer on the game, and how it has some insane endurance and decent melee skills. All this information completely fell through the floorboards of a creaking old house and landed on a giant rock when I was told that all I was allowed to do was stand in the background and main heal/enfeeble each and every monster to death.

Quite honestly, I don't think that was the idea SE had intended for RDM. In a way, I feel kinda sorry for it, because people still, for some reason, call it the "jack-of-all-trades" which MEANS it can do everything, but not as well. Now I thought because of game development, more people would think of RDM as being just a main healer, or just a support job, but not even close. I find out that this peice of information that I was given to me years back has STILL been passed on to other newbies. So they follow the same path of destruction I did and get kicked in the balls for even drawing my weapon. Or mabye thats just me...

But enough of job information, lets talk about stats and job roles.

The job, itself, has the highest enfeebling magic rating on FFXI, which I commend it for, but the other stats it has are a B or less. Which is perfect for its role of jack-of-all-trades, because it means that it doesn't specialise in anything. Oh but wait, whats this? an A+ enfeebling rating? and WHATS THIS? Highest Enhancing magic skill? This kinda throws the whole jack-of-all-trades thing out of the window, because it SPECIALISES IN SOMETHINGS.

But this could possibly be put back in when you think of the tiers of spells it gets. It doesn't get tier 4 and ancient magic like BLM does and only goes up to tier 3 for regular magic. And it doesn't get cure 5 and curaga (without having to sub it) spells like WHM does. So ok, this puts it back in the jack-of-all-trades area again, but yet again, it will get pulled and thrown out because now it has spells that are overpowered such as Phalanx and Gravity. But I guess this would be the only reason why its such a mean soloing job.

As for job roles, its basically increadibly flexible. Because you CAN main heal, you CAN support your party up to an extent, and you CAN do some kind of damage with the tiny dagger that carry about with you.

As much as i've criticised and booo'd at RDM over the past couple of years, overall, it can actually be a fun job. But this all depends on whether your party members are not retarded and don't constantly whine in your face for refresh and haste.